By William Schomberg
GENEVA (Reuters) - The European Union's top tradenegotiators said on Saturday they had support to continue talkson a compromise plan in world trade talks, but some EU statesexpressed deep concern about the negotiations.
The Doha negotiations for a global trade deal were launchedin 2001 to boost the world economy and help fight poverty andchances for a long-elusive breakthrough improved dramaticallyon Friday as the compromise proposals were hammered out.
"We will return to the 'green room' tomorrow with thebacking of EU member states to work on this emerging deal," EUTrade Commissioner Peter Mandelson said, referring aclosed-door meeting of trade ministers from around 30 key WorldTrade Organization players scheduled for Sunday.
"There are still potential potholes in the road ... But weare closer to a deal than we have been at any point in the lastseven years," Mandelson told reporters on the sixth day ofintensive talks, which are aimed at reaching a breakthrough inthe long-running Doha world trade round.
After a week of stalemated negotiations aimed at slashingimport tariffs and trade distorting subsidies, negotiators fromsix key countries and the EU accepted compromises floated byWorld Trade Organization (WTO) chief Pascal Lamy.
Mandelson and European Agriculture Commissioner MariannFischer Boel met EU member states to brief them on the proposedcompromise, which would require the EU cut its spending ceilingon trade-distorting farm subsidies by 80 percent and open itsmarket to increased agriculture imports.
But Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said he andFrench President Nicolas Sarkozy had "deep concern" aboutproposals drawn up to rescue the deal and would remain in touchas the talks continue.
French Trade Secretary Anne-Marie Idrac said several EUcountries including France, which has the presidency of thebloc, were concerned the proposals were not balanced and neededto secure more access to markets in developing countries.
Ireland also expressed disquiet.
"There is considerable disquiet and discontent (among EUcountries) on a number of the specific aspects of it," MaryCoughlan, Ireland's deputy prime minister, told Reuters.
"We have a couple of issues and one, of course, isagriculture. And we don't see the balance in NAMA (trade inindustrial goods), and we haven't seen services at all as ofyet," she added.
INDUSTRIAL GOODS
Mandelson said he and Fischer Boel "were well satisfiedwith the backing that we received." Most EU ministers said "itwould be very, very regrettable and a serious loss for theworld if the Doha round were to fail," Mandelson said.
One diplomat said the talks, originally scheduled to end onSaturday, had been extended to July 30 but a WTO spokesman saidthere was no formal end-date.
Mandelson, who negotiates on behalf of the 27 EU memberstates, said the Lamy compromise was "not beautiful, but it'sfinally put together what will be a genuine boost for the worldeconomy."
Many EU states are worried they will have to slashsubsidies to politically powerful farmers without receivingenough access to developing markets for manufactured goods andservices.
Italy's top trade official, Adolfo Urso, told Reuters hewanted more market access for industrial goods than offered inLamy's draft, and progress protecting place names associatedwith certain products, such as Champagne and Parma ham.
Swedish Foreign Trade Minister Ewa Bjorling told Reutershis country could accept the package now on the table, butIndia, which has pushed hard for a better deal for developingcountries, said it was still not satisfied with the proposals.
"We have brought many goodies and we expect to receive newgoodies. And if we don't, we will go back with the same goodiesthat we came with," said Indian WTO ambassador Ujal SinghBhatia.
(Additional reporting by Laura MacInnis and Doug Palmer)
(Reporting by William Schomberg; Writing by Robin Pomeroy;Editing by Jon Boyle)
